How to optimize a three day ski trip?

[CalG]

My wife and I went out to the Lake Tahoe area to visit our son.
While we were there, we thought to enjoy some of the fine skiing the area offers. ;-)

After a disappointing 26+ hour air travel ordeal that started with a 2:45 AM message of flight cancellation and ended with "the pass code to our condo door doesn't work" at 2: AM on Tuesday (west coast time) we were beat.

But, It was snowing, and I was at a ski area, So "had to go". It was about 11 AM. I skied solo "under the lift" (6) as the mountain was new to me. and I like not to get lost or "over terrained". New to me skis (187 Bonefide) seemed to swing with a bit of lethargy. But I had a great time as the snow fell.

Second day:
The root of this post!

My son met up with my wife and I and we took a single run on the green trail that matches his mother's preference. Then my son and I went off to ski the mountain. To say there was a breeze was an understatement, it snowed heavily and often the visibility was less than zero. (do the math on that ;-)

To the point, This second day my skiing performance was MISERABLE!

I low sided frequently with the poor vis., and these old legs just barked and howled! I blamed it on the altitude, the jet lag, and just being OLD. I felt badly that my strapping son had to put up with this "old guy". Still, It was a great day in 8 inches of new snow. But I was BEAT doing it.

Third day, with a foot of fresh, and the the entire mountain opening after considerable "safety control" that included many Howitzer and hand charges, we repeated the previous routine. A morning start that included a "Trip to the top" for my wife, (along with a subsequent down load. (Ahh! the distinction of being family of the patrol ;-) my son and I skied HARD until 2:00. Including long traverses with considerable stepping up. cornice drops and knee deep snow through trees and steeps in the back bowl. Sort of a second wind.
I surprised myself with just how much skiing was enjoyed.

The question is, What to do to avoid that second day slump?

I must say, I have never suffered altitude related impairment previously, but I did need to recover my breath after some of the runs.
I have never consumed so much water in the span of so few days. Whoa! I could not keep the water glass full. ;-)

Ideas on a better "second day"??

 

[raytseng]

everybody is different so you need to find what works for you.

However in general it is your summer and fall work that will help you avoid 2nd day issues. If you put in exercise time and stress yourself with cardio type activities, yes perhaps little to little gains in the difficulty while you are doing it but you will really notice recovery will be faster and easier.
If you take like a spin class with an instructor that traches you about metrics you will get a sense of when you are in the green yellow orange and red, where red is beyond your limits and requires recovery time.

Then, the more you put in ski weekend 2 or 3 day trips and time at elevation, the more familiar this becomes.

As far as specific recovery, you can work in the red and leave 110% it all on the mtn if you know this is your last chance at skiing and have days or weeks after to recovery. Things like preloading with aleeve or advil and postloading may not be healthiest choice but will let you perform for a few days. Other such as taking elecrolyte packets or supplements such as sportslegs can be easier then trying to eat 3bananas and getting those naturally.
foam rollers stretching etc will also work.

 

[CalG]

The bananas sound good... '
Thanks for the suggestions. I know I could always be in better shape. I was struck by the improvement on day three over day two.

seems odd...

Maybe it was the visibility issue.

eta
NB I ski four days a week min from late November till closing. I should be fairly conditioned to the task.
Jet lag and altitude maybe, but funny about the third day spring back.

 

[Green08]

Sleep? Stress from travel and mental fatigue of the new skis and mountain can place a big toll on the body.

Sleep is about the single most important thing for recovery. Closest we have to a miracle drug. Getting deprived in artival probably set you back some.

Get more sleep if possible.

 

[KingGrump]

George Strait's opening line in his song "Troubadour" - "Still feel 25, most of the time."
That describes most skiers in their 50's and beyond. It's a mental thing. The issue is the body didn't get the memo.

Staying fit helps, but the most important thing for us older skiers is to align the mind and body. We have to fix our mind so it doesn’t write checks the body can’t cash.
Listen to your body. Pace yourself. I like o say “Now it takes me all night to do what I used to do all night.”

I am not saying to slow down and/or give up. I am talking about finding ways to ski more efficiently. Get more done with less. Stop fighting gravity and dance with the mountain instead.

 

[CalG]

George Strait's opening line in his song "Troubadour" - "Still feel 25, most of the time."
That describes most skiers in their 50's and beyond. It's a mental thing. The issue is the body didn't get the memo.

Staying fit helps, but the most important thing for us older skiers is to align the mind and body. We have to fix our mind so it doesn’t write checks the body can’t cash.
Listen to your body. Pace yourself. I like o say “Now it takes me all night to do what I used to do all night.”

I am not saying to slow down and/or give up. I am talking about finding ways to ski more efficiently. Get more done with less. Stop fighting gravity and dance with the mountain instead.

How do your comments explain the third day?

 

[geepers]

My guess is day 2 was atypical with the bad vis.

Skiing one chair days - that's when the only chair that can be seen is the one you are sitting on - screws just about everything. We tense up and can end up fighting the conditions instead of going with the flow. Tiring. Doubly so if balance is a little off from poor sleep.

Bounce back on day 3? Well, as the song goes:

The snow is really piling up outside
...
Now don't be sad
'Cause two out of three ain't bad​

 

[KingGrump]

How do your comments explain the third day?

Push too hard on day 1.

 

[eok]

I learned a long time ago to only take gear I have confidence in on a multi-day ski trip. That means ski setups I'm accustomed to and can rely on. Also means boots that are well fitted with multiple days on them already. If I want to experiment with new stuff on the trip, I'll demo. I've been on some trips where my go-to skis mostly stayed at in the car/condo because all the demos I tried were a blast. But if the demos were a no-go, I'd still have my go-to skis in the car.

Travel and accommodation preps are definitely an important factor for a ski trip. Air travel & associated logistics are so unpredictable now. To get around this, we try to allow an extra day at the start of the trip and a day at the end - so that's 5 days total for 3 ski days.

We've sometimes added 2-3 days at the start of the trip so we can acclimatize if the destination is super high altitude. More $$$ but so much less stress. Plus this usually means we get some time to actually get to know the area (dining, shopping, hiking, attractions).

Condo rentals can be a headache. We tend to go for condos referenced by friends/acquaintances. We stick with what has worked for us in the past. So much so that we will adjust our trip schedule to meet the condo availability to assure we get the same condo experience we had last time (yep, we usually plan the trip like months in advance). Biggest red flags (for us) is a condo owner (or prop management company) that is not responsive to calls/emails, can't answer our questions sufficiently and/or just seems new to the game.

 

[Tricia]

Push too hard on day 1.

I agree with this.
It sounds like you needed a "down" day after your travel ordeal to let your body adjust to the altitude and your mind clear from the travel.
And, you had low visibility which never helps.

 

[Josh Matta]

I avoid booze and drink tons of water when I am on ski vacations.....

Ill never remember what I drank, but I will remember what I skied and how I skied it.

 

[Nancy Hummel]

I think that the travel ordeal took its toll.

Most of us have our ski routines and the cumulative stress of packing, traveling, sleep interruption etc. can lead to fatigue.

Most of the stuff came from factors beyond your control. Move along. Nothing to see here.

 

[Yo Momma]

No matter the snow or my level of conditioning after the dreaded travel day, 1/2 day afternoon session only and "Chill" runs. First day for me, wake up late chill, talk to people about anything/everything, gear prep and check, relax, go for a walk, take in the ambiance, be a tourist...did I say relax!?!?......nice late breakfast, tons of water and no alcohol until later in the trip depending on the sleep altitude. If I sleep low, ski high I can drink after a few days.... sleep and ski high altitude = no alcohol, meat or cheese (if possible) during the entire trip as they are harder on my digestive system.

 

[Jim Kenney]

As an older guy who often made trips from sea level to western ski areas, I've had many western ski days where I didn't feel 100% or even 50%
The thing is to get back on the horse and keep riding. Invariably, what was fun before will be fun again.
I've been skiing Snowbird a lot this season. It is a dang demanding mtn, terrain-wise and deep snow-wise. I can't believe how many people can attack deep chopped snow in steep, tight trees and make it look easy. Most days I feel like the crappiest, most tired skier on the hill, but once in a while I still feel like I can fly. And that keeps me going.

 

[Stephen Witkop]

After a disappointing 26+ hour air travel ordeal that started with a 2:45 AM message of flight cancellation and ended with "the pass code to our condo door doesn't work" at 2: AM on Tuesday (west coast time) we were beat.

This, new skis, poor visibility, adjusting to altitude and 3 hour time zone change I'd be shocked you didn't have an "OFF" day! And being off just a little in fresh snow will sap you quicker than anything. All things considered I'd say you did pretty well given how things started.

 

[slowrider]

It's a vacation. Go easy and enjoy the ride.

 

[Johnny V.]

Maybe it was the visibility issue.

As an older guy, I find skiing in low vis conditions very fatiguing as I'm usually skiing defensively rather than taking an aggressive approach.

 

[HardDaysNight]

^^^It makes a huge difference, not only for older guys, and at all levels.

 

[Sibhusky]

Speaking as someone with EXTENSIVE experience with low visibility, it can be exhausting both mentally and physically. As much as you want to charge, you just can't get your head in that space, your balance is tentative, and you use different muscles just correcting your constant missteps. I feel ten years younger when I can see where I'm going!

 

[givethepigeye]

I travel....a lot for work and obviously to ski. I kind of live by these guiding principles:

• Fly out as early as possible (EC -> WC), allows for more alternatives when things go South
• Try to get some sleep on plane (some can, some can’t) I used to be in the latter group, now I sleep before we take off
• When I get where I’m going - take a nice shower and chill, get something to eat, go to sleep, don’t go out late
• Travel is a grind - it’s the least glamorous part of any trip....don’t underestimate the toll, physical and mental

These things have helped over the years for both work and play. Pretty much SOP now.